Representative for Sungei Road vendors sorry for confusion over proposed move

SINGAPORE — The head of the association representing the Sungei Road flea market vendors on Thursday (July 13) apologised for “any confusion caused” over the plan for them to peddle their wares at the rooftop car park of Golden Mile Tower starting this weekend.

Mr Koh Eng Khoon, president of the Association for the Recycling of Second Hand Goods, has also said sorry to the car park’s owner, LHN Group, which had made a police report after contractors hired by the association went to the site on Tuesday and demarcated lots for the vendors without the company’s permission. 

Following the apology, LHN Group spokesman Jeremy Ong told TODAY that the firm is considering “waiving off the matter”, provided that Mr Koh “agrees to reinstate the flooring ... to its original condition”. 

When contacted, Mr Koh said the association was discussing the matter with LHN. 

Mr Ong said that while the company is still open to the possibility of leasing out the space to the vendors, neither Mr Koh nor other representatives from the association have approached them for further discussions. 

He stressed that any agreement is also subject to approval by all the relevant authorities, including the management of Golden Mile Tower, the Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA), the Singapore Civil Defence Force (SCDF), and the Singapore Police Force. 

With the association yet to make a change of use application to the URA — which would generally take about 10 days to process — it is all but certain that the relocation on Saturday will not go ahead as planned.

In a change of use application, if one seeks to change the use of a property (for instance, from a shop to a restaurant, or from a restaurant to a pub), that person may need to apply for planning permission for change of use from the URA.

Before signing a tenancy or purchase agreement of a property, they need to check if their intended use for the property is allowed.

Mr Koh had earlier this week told reporters that a deal to move to the rooftop car park of Golden Mile Tower had been struck, and that the group had paid S$10,000 in rental fees for the first month of operation at the new premises. 

However, LHN said on Wednesday that there was no such deal.

Mr Koh, 76, said in a statement on Thursday that it was “hard for an elderly person like me to handle so many phone calls seeking information”, and he sought the understanding of the public as well as the media to “allow us some time” to resolve the issues.

Vendors who have expressed interest to relocate to Golden Mile Tower have been informed of the delay, he said.

They continue to support the proposed move and await further notice from the association on the matter, he added.

He said that the association had met LHN representatives once in late June, and again on July 5 and 11 to “discuss the terms and conditions”. 

A “verbal agreement” was reached with the understanding that URA approval is needed, he added, but no rental payment has been transacted, and the S$10,000 figure was mentioned only as an estimate of the monthly rent. 

When asked to verify Mr Koh’s account of the discussions, LHN did not respond to TODAY’s queries.

“As we have only operated within the free hawking zone, we do not have the experience of negotiating the official processes. 

“Our resources are also quite constrained but we will do our best to make the relocation plan a real possibility,” Mr Koh said.

He said the association approached the URA on Tuesday and Wednesday to “understand the requirements and the application process”. 

An architect has “kindly stepped forward” to initiate the process but no application has been made yet, he said.

The URA had said on Wednesday that it has advised the association on the application procedure. 

Apart from getting consent from the property owner, the applicant would also need to obtain clearances from “technical agencies” such as the SCDF on fire safety, as well as the development’s management. 

The consultation with these parties can be done in parallel with the submission of the application to the URA.

Mr Koh reiterated that many vendors were “living in a financially precarious situation, and they hope to restart trading as soon as possible”. 

“We simply wish to be able to maintain our livelihood,” he said. ADDITIONAL REPORTING BY KELLY NG